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| − | '''''The Last Word''''' was a ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' comic story which celebrated the tenth anniversary of the [[Virgin New Adventures]]. Consequently, it featured the [[Seventh Doctor]], [[Benny]] and an older [[Ace]]. {{As of|2017}}, it remains the last [[Seventh Doctor]] strip printed in the pages of ''DWM''. |
+ | '''''The Last Word''''' was a ''[[Doctor Who Magazine]]'' comic story which celebrated the tenth anniversary of the [[Virgin New Adventures]]. Consequently, it featured the [[Seventh Doctor]], [[Bernice Summerfield|Benny]] and an older [[Ace]]. {{As of|2017}}, it remains the last [[Seventh Doctor]] strip printed in the pages of ''DWM''. |
Although the Seventh Doctor had previously featured in [[Time & Time Again (comic story)|one full-colour DWM strip before]], this was the character's first appearance in the pages of ''DWM'' after the magazine permanently moved to a colour strip. As a result it is also the only Seventh Doctor ''DWM'' comic to be digitally produced. |
Although the Seventh Doctor had previously featured in [[Time & Time Again (comic story)|one full-colour DWM strip before]], this was the character's first appearance in the pages of ''DWM'' after the magazine permanently moved to a colour strip. As a result it is also the only Seventh Doctor ''DWM'' comic to be digitally produced. |
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| − | To those fans who had only begun following the comic strip recently and had not read the New Adventures, the story would likely have made little sense. Coming as it did over seven years since Benny's last appearance in a ''DWM'' comic story, and in the middle of the [[Eighth Doctor]]'s run, the story was surprising for its lack of narrative introductions. The [[Timewyrm]], [[Puterspace]], [[Benny]], and [[Smithwood Manor]] all appeared without any narrative explanation. The sudden reappearance of the older Ace in DWM also meant a return to the continuity of even earlier strips, as her very last appearance in the magazine some five years before featured her unambiguous death as a teenager. |
+ | To those fans who had only begun following the comic strip recently and had not read the New Adventures, the story would likely have made little sense. Coming as it did over seven years since Benny's last appearance in a ''DWM'' comic story, and in the middle of the [[Eighth Doctor]]'s run, the story was surprising for its lack of narrative introductions. The [[Timewyrm]], [[Puterspace]], [[Bernice Summerfield|Benny]], and [[Smithwood Manor]] all appeared without any narrative explanation. The sudden reappearance of the older Ace in DWM also meant a return to the continuity of even earlier strips, as her very last appearance in the magazine some five years before featured her unambiguous death as a teenager. |
Readers steeped in the lore of the New Adventures would have understood the strip easily, and as a result cited Ace's re-emergence in ''DWM'' as a repudiation of her "blasphemous" death in ''[[Ground Zero (comic story)|Ground Zero]]''. The story celebrated the range by reuniting the Seventh Doctor with his first New Adventures foe, the Timewyrm, and included fan-servicing meta-textual elements such as the idea that the Doctor himself wrote all of the New Adventures novels and a panel in featuring a conveniently-placed [[chessboard]] in the foreground with the Doctor, out-of-focus, standing behind. Similarly, both Ace and Benny angrily questioned why adventures with with the Doctor "always [had] to be so bloody complicated" — a common criticism of the New Adventures themselves. |
Readers steeped in the lore of the New Adventures would have understood the strip easily, and as a result cited Ace's re-emergence in ''DWM'' as a repudiation of her "blasphemous" death in ''[[Ground Zero (comic story)|Ground Zero]]''. The story celebrated the range by reuniting the Seventh Doctor with his first New Adventures foe, the Timewyrm, and included fan-servicing meta-textual elements such as the idea that the Doctor himself wrote all of the New Adventures novels and a panel in featuring a conveniently-placed [[chessboard]] in the foreground with the Doctor, out-of-focus, standing behind. Similarly, both Ace and Benny angrily questioned why adventures with with the Doctor "always [had] to be so bloody complicated" — a common criticism of the New Adventures themselves. |
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== Summary == |
== Summary == |
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| − | Whilst [[The Doctor's TARDIS|the TARDIS]] traverses the [[time vortex]], the [[Seventh Doctor]] is attempting to write a novel about his adventures with [[Benny]] and [[Ace]]. As he writes, he recounts a recent adventure with the duo during which they were all together at [[Smithwood Manor]]. Devising a plan to lure the [[Timewyrm]] into a trap, he sends Benny to the [[1981]] to join a new romantic band named [[Flash Trash]], and Ace to the future to tackle the [[Chelonian]]s fighting in a [[Frontier War]] in the [[57th century]], claiming that he needs them to set history right in both periods. |
+ | Whilst [[The Doctor's TARDIS|the TARDIS]] traverses the [[time vortex]], the [[Seventh Doctor]] is attempting to write a novel about his adventures with [[Bernice Summerfield|Benny]] and [[Ace]]. As he writes, he recounts a recent adventure with the duo during which they were all together at [[Smithwood Manor]]. Devising a plan to lure the [[Timewyrm]] into a trap, he sends Benny to the [[1981]] to join a new romantic band named [[Flash Trash]], and Ace to the future to tackle the [[Chelonian]]s fighting in a [[Frontier War]] in the [[57th century]], claiming that he needs them to set history right in both periods. |
These are weak points in the [[Web of Time]], and the women's tampering brings about fundamental change to the flow of time. This gives the Timewrym something to feed upon, causing it to emerge from [[Puterspace]] to taunt the Doctor about his obvious trap. At first it appears that the Timewyrm has gained the upper hand, pulling the Doctor into Puterspace, but he springs a trap within a trap and the Timewyrm is soon denied the ability to transit between Puterspace and real space. The Doctor has achieved his final victory over the meddlesome Timewyrm. |
These are weak points in the [[Web of Time]], and the women's tampering brings about fundamental change to the flow of time. This gives the Timewrym something to feed upon, causing it to emerge from [[Puterspace]] to taunt the Doctor about his obvious trap. At first it appears that the Timewyrm has gained the upper hand, pulling the Doctor into Puterspace, but he springs a trap within a trap and the Timewyrm is soon denied the ability to transit between Puterspace and real space. The Doctor has achieved his final victory over the meddlesome Timewyrm. |
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* Benny enjoys [[single malt whiskey]]. |
* Benny enjoys [[single malt whiskey]]. |
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* An audience member at [[Flash Trash]]'s concert claims that [[Spandau Ballet]] have a better "lightshow" than the band Benny is playing with. |
* An audience member at [[Flash Trash]]'s concert claims that [[Spandau Ballet]] have a better "lightshow" than the band Benny is playing with. |
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| − | * The Timewyrm shed its physical form and exists purely in [[puterspace]]. |
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== Notes == |
== Notes == |
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* The girl who auditions before Benny is Kim Wilde, who sang ''Kids in America''. |
* The girl who auditions before Benny is Kim Wilde, who sang ''Kids in America''. |
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| − | * Apart from having ''shed'' its physical form, there is no explanation as to how the Timewyrm returned after '' [[Timewyrm: Revelation (novel)|Revelation]]'', unless the story is meant to take place between ''[[Timewyrm: Apocalypse]]'' and ''Revelation'', where it had previously mentioned "other adventures" away from the Doctor. |
+ | * Apart from having ''shed'' its physical form, there is no explanation as to how the Timewyrm returned after '' [[Timewyrm: Revelation (novel)|Revelation]]'', unless the story is meant to take place between ''[[Timewyrm: Apocalypse (novel)|Timewyrm: Apocalypse]]'' and ''Revelation'', where it had previously mentioned "other adventures" away from the Doctor. |
== Continuity == |
== Continuity == |
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| Line 62: | Line 61: | ||
* [[Puterspace]] exists in the [[26th century]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Love and War (novel)|Love and War]]'', [[AUDIO]]: ''[[Love and War (audio story)|Love and War]]'') |
* [[Puterspace]] exists in the [[26th century]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Love and War (novel)|Love and War]]'', [[AUDIO]]: ''[[Love and War (audio story)|Love and War]]'') |
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* The Doctor is wearing his cream linen suit and fedora. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[White Darkness (novel)|White Darkness]]'' et al) |
* The Doctor is wearing his cream linen suit and fedora. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[White Darkness (novel)|White Darkness]]'' et al) |
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| − | * The Doctor remembers the |
+ | * The Doctor remembers the deaths of [[Katarina]], [[Sara Kingdom]] ([[TV]]: ''[[The Daleks' Master Plan (TV story)|The Daleks' Master Plan]]'') and [[Adric]], ([[TV]]: ''[[Earthshock (TV story)|Earthshock]]'') failing the [[Silurian]]s twice ([[TV]]: ''[[Doctor Who and the Silurians (TV story)|Doctor Who and the Silurians]]'', ''[[Warriors of the Deep (TV story)|Warriors of the Deep]]'') and leaving an entire parallel Earth to die. ([[TV]]: ''[[Inferno (TV story)|Inferno]]'' or [[PROSE]]: ''[[Blood Heat (novel)|Blood Heat]]'') |
| − | * Benny previously encountered [[Chelonian]]s on the planet [[Sakkrat]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Highest Science]]'') |
+ | * Benny previously encountered [[Chelonian]]s on the planet [[Sakkrat]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[The Highest Science (novel)|The Highest Science]]'') |
* The Timewyrm would later attend Benny and [[Jason Kane]]'s wedding in [[Cheldon Bonniface]] on [[24 April]] [[2010]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Happy Endings (novel)|Happy Endings]]'') |
* The Timewyrm would later attend Benny and [[Jason Kane]]'s wedding in [[Cheldon Bonniface]] on [[24 April]] [[2010]]. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Happy Endings (novel)|Happy Endings]]'') |
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* The gates to [[Smithwood Manor]] are shown in some detail, and feature much vandalism: the "[[Allen Road]]" side has been changed to read "Alien Road", while the "beware of the dog" sign has been altered to "beware of the god". ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Cat's Cradle: Warhead (novel)|Cat's Cradle: Warhead]]'') |
* The gates to [[Smithwood Manor]] are shown in some detail, and feature much vandalism: the "[[Allen Road]]" side has been changed to read "Alien Road", while the "beware of the dog" sign has been altered to "beware of the god". ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Cat's Cradle: Warhead (novel)|Cat's Cradle: Warhead]]'') |
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{{Seventh Doctor DWM comics}} |
{{Seventh Doctor DWM comics}} |
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{{TitleSort}} |
{{TitleSort}} |
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[[Category:Bernice Summerfield stories]] |
[[Category:Bernice Summerfield stories]] |
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[[Category:Bernice Summerfield comic stories]] |
[[Category:Bernice Summerfield comic stories]] |
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Revision as of 21:39, 22 March 2020
The Last Word was a Doctor Who Magazine comic story which celebrated the tenth anniversary of the Virgin New Adventures. Consequently, it featured the Seventh Doctor, Benny and an older Ace. As of 2017[update], it remains the last Seventh Doctor strip printed in the pages of DWM.
Although the Seventh Doctor had previously featured in one full-colour DWM strip before, this was the character's first appearance in the pages of DWM after the magazine permanently moved to a colour strip. As a result it is also the only Seventh Doctor DWM comic to be digitally produced.
To those fans who had only begun following the comic strip recently and had not read the New Adventures, the story would likely have made little sense. Coming as it did over seven years since Benny's last appearance in a DWM comic story, and in the middle of the Eighth Doctor's run, the story was surprising for its lack of narrative introductions. The Timewyrm, Puterspace, Benny, and Smithwood Manor all appeared without any narrative explanation. The sudden reappearance of the older Ace in DWM also meant a return to the continuity of even earlier strips, as her very last appearance in the magazine some five years before featured her unambiguous death as a teenager.
Readers steeped in the lore of the New Adventures would have understood the strip easily, and as a result cited Ace's re-emergence in DWM as a repudiation of her "blasphemous" death in Ground Zero. The story celebrated the range by reuniting the Seventh Doctor with his first New Adventures foe, the Timewyrm, and included fan-servicing meta-textual elements such as the idea that the Doctor himself wrote all of the New Adventures novels and a panel in featuring a conveniently-placed chessboard in the foreground with the Doctor, out-of-focus, standing behind. Similarly, both Ace and Benny angrily questioned why adventures with with the Doctor "always [had] to be so bloody complicated" — a common criticism of the New Adventures themselves.
Summary
Whilst the TARDIS traverses the time vortex, the Seventh Doctor is attempting to write a novel about his adventures with Benny and Ace. As he writes, he recounts a recent adventure with the duo during which they were all together at Smithwood Manor. Devising a plan to lure the Timewyrm into a trap, he sends Benny to the 1981 to join a new romantic band named Flash Trash, and Ace to the future to tackle the Chelonians fighting in a Frontier War in the 57th century, claiming that he needs them to set history right in both periods.
These are weak points in the Web of Time, and the women's tampering brings about fundamental change to the flow of time. This gives the Timewrym something to feed upon, causing it to emerge from Puterspace to taunt the Doctor about his obvious trap. At first it appears that the Timewyrm has gained the upper hand, pulling the Doctor into Puterspace, but he springs a trap within a trap and the Timewyrm is soon denied the ability to transit between Puterspace and real space. The Doctor has achieved his final victory over the meddlesome Timewyrm.
Back in the TARDIS, as the Doctor finishes writing up the story, Ace realises that she once again has been used as bait in one of the Doctor's schemes, and Benny is left wondering why travelling with the Doctor is always "so bloody complicated".
Characters
- Seventh Doctor
- Ace
- Bernice Summerfield
- Timewyrm
- Chelonians
- Adam
- Steve
References
- To indicate his victory, the Doctor says, "You are the weakest link. Goodbye."
- Benny enjoys single malt whiskey.
- An audience member at Flash Trash's concert claims that Spandau Ballet have a better "lightshow" than the band Benny is playing with.
Notes
- The girl who auditions before Benny is Kim Wilde, who sang Kids in America.
- Apart from having shed its physical form, there is no explanation as to how the Timewyrm returned after Revelation, unless the story is meant to take place between Timewyrm: Apocalypse and Revelation, where it had previously mentioned "other adventures" away from the Doctor.
Continuity
- Ace last encountered the Timewyrm on the Moon, (PROSE: Timewyrm: Revelation) and refers to it as "the mad mutha of Mesopotamia". (PROSE: Timewyrm: Genesys)
- Puterspace exists in the 26th century. (PROSE: Love and War, AUDIO: Love and War)
- The Doctor is wearing his cream linen suit and fedora. (PROSE: White Darkness et al)
- The Doctor remembers the deaths of Katarina, Sara Kingdom (TV: The Daleks' Master Plan) and Adric, (TV: Earthshock) failing the Silurians twice (TV: Doctor Who and the Silurians, Warriors of the Deep) and leaving an entire parallel Earth to die. (TV: Inferno or PROSE: Blood Heat)
- Benny previously encountered Chelonians on the planet Sakkrat. (PROSE: The Highest Science)
- The Timewyrm would later attend Benny and Jason Kane's wedding in Cheldon Bonniface on 24 April 2010. (PROSE: Happy Endings)
- The gates to Smithwood Manor are shown in some detail, and feature much vandalism: the "Allen Road" side has been changed to read "Alien Road", while the "beware of the dog" sign has been altered to "beware of the god". (PROSE: Cat's Cradle: Warhead)
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